The OIG analyzed claims data for lab tests that CMS paid under Medicare’s Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule, under Medicare Part B. Effective this year, CMS replaced payment rates with new rates for clinical diagnostic laboratory tests. This was the first reform in three decades to Medicare’s payment system for lab tests. Congress mandated that the OIG monitor Medicare payments for lab tests and the implementation and effect of the new payment system for those tests. The OIG concluded the new payment system for lab tests took for this year has resulted in significant changes to the Medicare payment rates for lab tests. The OIG used the data collected to date as a benchmark against which to measure the effects of changes to the payment system when new data from 2018 become available. The OIG report provided the fourth set of annual baseline analyses of the top 25 lab tests. The OIG identified the top 25 tests based on Medicare payments in 2017 and found:

In 2017, Medicare paid $7.1 billion for Part B lab tests, at about the same level for last 4-years.

The top 25 tests totaled $4.5 billion, 64 percent of the total and about the same rate for prior years.

A total of 50,000 labs received payment in 2017 and three labs received $1.1 billion, 15 percent of the total payments.

The top 25 tests were similarly concentrated among a few labs: 1 percent of labs received 55 percent of all Medicare payments for the top 25 lab tests in 2017.

Richard P. Kusserow served as DHHS Inspector General for 11 years. He currently is CEO of Strategic Management Services, LLC (SM), a firm that has assisted more than 3,000 organizations and entities with compliance related matters. The SM sister company, CRC, provides a wide range of compliance tools including sanction-screening.